What We Do

Restoration

The Cache Creek Conservancy (CCC) is dedicated to restoring ecological function and enhancing the quality and quantity of wildlife habitat along Cache Creek. The Conservancy is the primary implementing agency of the Cache Creek Area Plan, an element of Yolo County's general plan. We are the “boots on the ground”, we manage and execute conservation, restoration, and enhancement projects from start to finish. This work includes: procuring grant funding, environmental permitting, site analysis and selection, site monitoring and maintenance, native plant propagation, and the management of invasive species’ populations.

Education

The CCC's Experience the Creek environmental education program is offered to schools and other visitors to the Cache Creek Nature Preserve. This comprehensive environmental education experience focuses on the ecology, culture, and the history of the Cache Creek watershed. Our environmental education team works to help teachers meet the State's Next Generation Science Standard (NGSS) curriculum, providing hands-on experiences that teachers cannot accomplish in the classroom. The program's activities emphasize interactive learning and support the NGSS. Students, working together in teams, learn first-hand by observing and using natural materials and each lesson is taught by volunteers and supervised by our knowledgeable staff. The CCC currently offers approximately 25 "kid-driven" activities that can be adapted to any age or grade level. As a result of our program, some of the students have gone on to become naturalists or biologists and continue to visit the Nature Preserve.

The Tending and Gathering Garden

The Tending and Gathering Garden (TGG is a collaborative effort between the Native American community and the CCC to demonstrate traditional land and plant management practices of California's native people. Situated on 3-acres in the Cache Creek Nature Preserve, the TGG is home to culturally significant native plants found within the Cache Creek watershed. These plants are used for basketry, food, fiber, shelter, medicine, and watercraft. The TGG serves as a source for cultural practitioners to gather plant material. It also provides a place for hands-on education including plant identification, plant use, and traditional management methods. These practices include pruning, coppicing and burning. No pesticides or herbicides are used in the TGG.